 Poster: A snowHead
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I am 46 - nice to see a discussion among the more mature boarders, I think it would be nice to have our own sub-forum!!! I think as we get older boarding is better for the knees - I started out as a young skier and choose to turn to the darkside 
BTW I am off to Courchevel 15 - 22 March if any of you lot are around the 3 Valleys and want to meetup (I am lower intermediate level).
Cheers,
Jez
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| MTBIKERBOARDER wrote: |
| I am 46 - nice to see a discussion among the more mature boarders, I think it would be nice to have our own sub-forum!!! |
Just call it Apres.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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I'm 45 and been boarding since my mid twenties, and my mate I go away with is 49...I spent my teens riding BMX and skateboarding, snowboarding seemed a natural progression plus I'd look a bit mental now on a BMX.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Administration is considering a snoldFarts forum chapter after reading the wrinkles on this lot of old scrote peelings 
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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They're all old these days, all the kids are skiing.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Im 48 and been boarding 25 years, I have never skiied but I came from a surfing background so picked up boarding easily. I met a 75 year young lady in Courcheval last year, she was using the step on binding system which is how we got talking, she said it made a great difference as she got older. If I can stay fit and get lucky healthwise I hope to be doing the same at her age.
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Great thread resurrection.....
I'm a 56 year old surf bum who lives out West (Clare) and yeah I'm gonna keep going as long as I can. Step ons or not.
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| Richard_Sideways wrote: |
| Forty seven??? PAH! Oldest snowboarder I ever met was 82... And she was learning. Shedloads in their 60's who'd come to snowboarding after knee problems stopped them skiing. |
Wonder if she’s still going
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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I’m 55 regularly ride with guys in their 60’s.
Been using step ons last season, not for age related reasons (given a setup to try out) and I rate them for ride quality and convenience.
Had a cortisone shot in my back and shoulder recently. Got back and hip surgery due soon and still dealing with some brain damage - all snowboarding related. It would definitely be good to be less poo-poo at riding as I have got older, grown a bigger ego and had the time and financial resources to chase bigger crashes 
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| Gored wrote: |
| Richard_Sideways wrote: |
| Forty seven??? PAH! Oldest snowboarder I ever met was 82... And she was learning. Shedloads in their 60's who'd come to snowboarding after knee problems stopped them skiing. |
Wonder if she’s still going |
That was in about 2005, so she'd have been 101 this year.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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@Duracell Bunny, is still shredding and is well into his retirement!
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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I'm 66, learnt at 52 never having skied except for a school trip aged 12.
Eight week trip coming up.
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Plenty of crusty old boarders here!
I'm 53, started boarding back in 1996 when I was 25. I try to keep up with @Doctor John and @EatSleepRideRepeat.
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You know it makes sense.
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I'm 52 and have been boarding for 25 years. Just invested in a step-on (Burton Photon + Genesis) set-up as keeping up with 3 extremely good, technical + fast skiers had increasingly become a big challenge.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Poster: A snowHead
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Living the dream, @eatSleepRideRepeat!
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Another 52er here. Started in 2008 got in just under 30 weeks with 1 or 2 trips a year. Bought my last setup gnu mullair and union atlas which are going strong after 3 years and not looking to change to step ons any time soon... I'll leave it to the old folk!
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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As I'm only a mere 50 I'll refrain from throwing my hat into this (possibly erratic at these ages) p*ssing contest ring.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Oldest.. interesting concept. I started in 1989, so pretty old. Or did you mean something else?
I don't think lack of experience is something one ought to bang on about though, it seems unfair.
Sometimes young folk are able to keep up reasonably well, especially in easier terrain and conditions.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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This thread has got me reminiscing about all the boards I've had since I first snowboarded in 1993. so here's a list, I think I've got them all in order of appearance. Its surprised me how many there are.
1 - Some Morrow with a pointy nose that I rounded off with a jigsaw so it looked more modern. fixed bindings too. Sold
2 - A Hammer 161 sold
3- Gnu Carbon High Beam sold
4 - K2 ambush 164 sold
5 - K2 Ambush 166 sold
6 - Arbor Abacus 164 (great board) sold
7 - Smokin KT22 159 sold
9 - Arbor Element 164 - worn out - still got it
10 - Arbor A Frame 164 - destroyed beyond repair half way down the first run I did on it
11 - Jones Mountain Twin 164w - worn out - still got it
12 - Jones Hovercraft 160 - current quiver
13 - Jones Frontier 164 - worn out, still got it
14 - Rossignol XV 168w - the older not ruined version - still got it - best board I've ever owned. Babying it along hoping Rossignol sort it out.
15 - Yes Optimistic 161 - snapped
16 - Jones Solution Split 169W - sold
17 - Amplid Surf Shuttle Split 161 - only had a few days on this
18 - Amplid Milligram Split 166 - work board, dead after one season. Will get another.
19 - Korua Pencil 164 - current daily driver
Don't even want to think about how much it all cost, but the last 15 years I've kept most of my boards until they are done. Don't often change boots or bindings though.
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@hang11, strewth that’s a lot of boards. I thought I’d bought a few. I have a smokin KT22 in the loft and a few other boards kicking around. Should have a clear out but second hand don’t get much
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I didn't start until I was 38 and finally quit aged 58. Only an occasional boarder, when conditions suited, still mainly skied. The concept mentioned by someone above, that some skiers switch to boarding because of knee problems, is mystifying to me. Boarding is hardly easy on the knees or, indeed, the rest of the body.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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| hang11 wrote: |
| This thread has got me reminiscing about all the boards I've had since I first snowboarded in 1993. so here's a list, I think I've got them all in order of appearance. Its surprised me how many there are... |
That's more interesting that making people feel inadequate because of their lack of experience.
These are boards I owned, either paid for or given to me. I rented, borrowed, and rode a lot of other boards, but these were the ones I carried around. I still have all except the ones which broke.
1 Hot le Plus 160 (1990)
Burton Kelly Asym Air copy, made by the company of the guy who now runs Dupraz. Half the price of the real Burton: their stuff was unreasonably expensive in the early days. Typically I would see very few other snowboarders and no English. Inserts weren't invented yet: you told them how you wanted it to be drilled and lived with it. Duck would have been funny if anyone thought it might happen.
2 Nitro Scorpion 163 (1994)
I wanted to rip and didn't care much for turning tricks. Early race boards were aggressively asymmetrical, and I didn't like that concept at all. In 1994 or so they invented “the new race method” which was based around symmetric boards, and this Nitro was the first generation. It was a beauty, typically sold with Fritschi bindings to match. Still no inserts. The board ripped. It was essentially a SL board, so useful across all the mountain, in the same way race skis of the day were if you could ski. So totally useless for side slippers I would imagine.
3 Santa Cruz 167 (1995)
I broke the nose off my beloved Scorpion in deep Revelstoke powder. I tried to excavate a buried log with the nose, which snapped, making it a very strange ride. I was sick. And I couldn't find a replacement; the local shops just sold trick boards by then. Eventually I found a race shop, and bought the best I could find, a big GS board. It wasn’t really my thing - it's hard to ride GS speeds safely in resorts - but ridable.
4 Nitro Scorpion 163 (1996?)
I bought a replacement “daily driver” board once back in the EU. This one wasn't as pretty as the original, but had inserts and was more suited to moguls and resort riding than the big GS board, which needed Mach 2.
5 Burton Supermodel mk 1 168 (1997)
I rode my SL and GS boards in Heli powder, but the GS was too stiff and felt like a plank in heli snow. I tried a supermodel (a Kelly board) and it worked. 3D Burton inserts. Pretty much everyone in a helicopter rode these boards, at this or longer lengths. They were fat and soft. These were standard "rentals" in heli operators at that time.
6 Donek FC 167 (1997)
The Supermodel ripped heli powder, but I didn’t consider riding it in hardpack. I needed something narrow enough to turn fast, stiff enough to provide support at speed: a piste board. The Donek wasn’t a race design, but aimed instead at the minority of Americans who could actually carve a turn. It carved well enough, but had a very “locked in” feel which I didn’t like much.
7 F2 SL 163 (1998)
This was a straight detuned race board, a wonderfully responsive glass design. Kick it, and it’d launch you right back, perfect for moguls and hardpack and all that. This was an honourable replacement for the Scorpion. I loved this very pretty board.
8 Burton Fish 156 soft (2001)
We all rode supermodels and no one on a small board would get in a helicopter. Then the Burto on rep turned up with a bag of these Terje/JG designs. We laughed at them, they were so radical. We didn't know what taper was. We trusted the rep though, so I took one out… and was an instant convert. I wouldn't give it back. 3D inserts, one length but two stiffness options, taper, no tail, big nose. The Fish was more responsive - quicker turning - than traditional powder boards of the day.
9 Kessler 156 SL (2001?)
The Fish was the perfect board for heli powder, but it wasn’t a piste board. Around this time Titanal (aluminium) started to be used in race boards, and “decambered noses” [Kessler had a patent]. The technologies were a game changer. The Kessler had less “kick” than the F2 (boo), but it could be ridden much faster without vibration being a problem (hooray). The first time I took it out I hit a mogul field… only to discover than I was going much faster than I thought, precisely because of the metal/ rubber damping. The Kessler design has remained largely unchanged: it just works.
10 Burton Malolo 158 (2007?)
The Fish was cool, until it wasn’t. Part of it's success - and it's still going, more or less - is that novice "back seat riders" can get away with that on those. Better riders started to bemoan the lack of “slash”. The Malolo (another JG/Terje collaboration) had an inscription on it about it having more slash and was targeted at niche. We lapped it up and switched to the Malolo. I think these were still 3D inserts, not channel. Directional taper, and cambered.
11 Burton Dump Truck 154 (2015?)
I rode most of the boards between the Malolo and the DT but didn’t like any of them enough to own & carry them around. The Dump Truck was different, or so I was told. A radical step forward for Burton in terms of a board which ripped powder but which also worked on piste. That was true, to some extent, but I still would revert to my Kessler for resort powder, because the DT felt too wide & plank like for me on piste.
12 Burton Hometown Hero 1.44 (2020?)
Klassen claimed he designed this as a “Verbier” board. Someone gave me a 1.44, a length I’d not have considered; I’d ridden the Nug at that length, and hated it. Anyway, I didn’t give it back.. I expected it to ride like the Dump Truck - they aren’t dissimilar in outline - but it was night and day better on piste. Right out of the bag it was as good as my Kessler on hardpack. Responsive: kick it and it kicks back, but damp to run at maximum legal public piste speeds and better. And better than any other current design in deep snow through serious trees.
I couldn’t believe it. I dumped my wheeled board bag, bought the smallest bag I could find, and now I carry just that one board. It dominates everything everywhere all the time. Your mileage may vary - I’m not recommending this to anyone - I’m just saying what works for me. And Klassen; we shared a fairly serious bump field in Verbier last season and I thought he wasn't too shabby for an old guy. I'd say it's an "experts only" board, especially in powder, although some of my expert buddies don't like the feel of it anyway - it's at one end of the spectrum. My end.
So there you go. I obviously rode a lot more boards, but I bought the good ones. The technology has advanced massively, but "this year's model" is seldom much different from last years. I rode all these boards except the Donek before buying them, and I probably wouldn't have bought that if I'd ridden it first. I sell all my old cameras (except a few which are now officially "classic"), but none of my old snowboards; they're basically valueless 2nd hand and they're fun to have around. They can bury me on my HH. But not the 152, only the 1.44 or the 1.48 at a push.
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@phil_w, really interesting post.
It’s strange that I’ve never owned a Burton board, through no other reason that I’m tight and only buy what’s cheap or I can get a discount on, but I have a few mates using the HTH split and solid, who love them and rip on them, definitely on my shopping list for the future.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Interesting for me to see other folk's history also.
Aye, I like to "optimize" the effectiveness of my cash  Burton pretty much dominated BC heli for the first 50 years, for whatever reason. The stuff worked, and when we tried alternatives - Capita or Salomon come to mind - they didn't really cut the mustard. Most of my Burton stuff was either given to me by my riding buddy the Burton rep, or bought through Proform, or with similar large "staff" discount.
The HTH is a love/ hate thing. It doesn't take prisoners. I'd say it's simply "experts only", except one of my washed up professional buddies who can clearly ride, doesn't like the feel of it. But then he doesn't like Klassen either, so it may just be that. I think it's very size critical.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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My patient is 82 and a keen snowboarder. I see him on the hill most days I’m there. Crossed over from skiing in his 60s. I last went skiing with my neighbour when he was 87, still pulling some nice shapes!
Oh Canada!
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This is an old thread.
Some of the OPs may have gone to the big snowboard in the sky.
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You know it makes sense.
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54 and heading to LesArcs !
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Poster: A snowHead
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Got me reminiscing too...
My snowboard odyssey began with a Burton 7 154 bought with cartel bindings for a tenner at a car boot sale in Enfield. This was around 2008 and I then had my first full week 08/09 season. I'd only done 3 days the previous winter. I should have kept it to learn on properly but thought a longer board would help with stability but also keep some of the playfulness. Wrong.
I bought a Salomon Special 162 which rode like a bus. Was horrible and regretted selling the 7. Sold it the following winter and bought..
K2 Believer 159. This was a nice progressive board but the flat profile got boring so after convincing my brother and the boys to get their own gear, I lent it to him after a couple of years who used it until 2015.
Yes big city 2011 at 158 with 8800 sintered base. This was a lovely board to ride all over the mountain. Loved the build quality of yes boards. Became hand me down no.2 which my bro still has.
2012 Endeavour Next full cambered 7700 sintered base fast and stable. This is a faster board than the big city and the turn initiation is lightning quick. Really helped me get faster and technical. Still have this one. I love it for piste blasting but not so good in deeper snow.
2013 I bought a Rome butterknife 156 for freestyle and flatland tricks. Eventually sold as upgraded to Jackpot 2015. Also bought a DC Ply which was another flat well micro cambered board. I was exploring a 2 board setup to take to the mountains and mix it up. It was good for freestyle but wasn't for me so sold after two trips.
At some point I bought a K2 Zeppelin for speed and freeride. Didn't get to ride this though as got a great offer and made a profit. Was probably too advanced for me at the time anyway. Also bought a Bataleon the jam which I rode for a day and decided to return. Got my money back.
Yes Jackpot 2015 156 bought to replace the butterknife. This version was too stiff for what I wanted so I sold it in 2018 and bought....
Yes Jackpot 2017 156 love this board for freestyle but can also get around the mountain no problem. Has a softer flex than the 2015. Not good in pow/ off piste. Still have it and use this one.
Burton Branch Manager 156 bought and sold for a hefty profit. Picked up cheap in an off-season sale. Was going to take it to Japan but didn't go and would have been the wrong size for me anyway.
2018 Jones Explorer 160(?) when I went to Japan and was a nice board. Turn initiation was slow but was excellent in deeper snow. Bit boring on piste. Came to whistler in 2019 where I demo'd a mullair and fell in love with it. Sold the explorer on my return to the UK.
2020 Gnu Mullair 161, bought the last mullair before Muller got booted out. My favourite snowboard I f**king love it. Goes everywhere with me. Paired with union atlas bindings hits the sweet spot for me. The cost of hiring compared to buying pretty much worked out the same as ski carriage was cheap and sometimes free in those days. I just brought a carry on case which had my civvy clothes for free. The boys were paying anything up to £180 for a week's hire. Buying off season saved me massive amounts of cash but could also sell the stuff the following winter. At one stage I had £3k of gear on eBay and the profit paid for a trip to the mountains. Good times!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Lets see...
Started out on a Burton Charger 160 which I bought end-of-line in a store in Mammoth. Was not a looker and had a weird matt surface which you couldn't stick anything on so ended up stencil-spraying a Banksy rat on it... It was the early 00ies and I worked in Shoreditch, so give me a break... Gave that away to the son of a friend in exchange for him doing some GCSE revision.
Burton Triumph mid-wide. Loved that thing fast and floaty responded really well to being pushed.
K2 WWW off eBay for about £30. Base is gouged and patched to hell but I only bought it as I wanted something short and playful for Hemel rather than the tanker that the Triumph was.
Retired the Triumph and bought the Jones Flagship I still ride now.
K2 Special Effects Which I got a too good to miss deal on from the guys who brought boards to the Oktobertest and is perfect for end of season Easter slush.
Still have all of them except the Charger, which I do regret giving away...
Theres a couple of others squirrelled away for the kids to ride or just because...
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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@Gainz, Yet none of those boards have made it to an off-piste bash?! 
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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I ordered a flagship today Wont get it for a few months but it’s summer anyway. Excited to try it out, enjoyed riding the solution so assuming it will be similar. This will be my daily driver for work.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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When I tried a XV it did feel a lot like the Flagship to me, although I believe they did soften the Flagship up a little since I bought mine.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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I think my boards went something like this:
1998 - Burton Custom 152
2000 - Burton Custom 160
2008 (approx) - Burton Sherlock 160
2012 (approx) - Burton Dominant 156
2013 (approx) Burton Nugget 148 (?)
2024 - Bataleon Party Wave + 154
Finally weaned myself of Burton boards last year and the few days I’ve had on the Bataleon I’ve liked it. Still got a soft spot for the Nug though and really wanted to like the Sherlock more but can’t really get on with the Flying V rocker so it’s sat gathering dust in the cellar, and is probably not worth selling.
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I learned on a stiff full camber Nitro Supra Team 165 that I bought secondhand first day on the slopes in 2005. Now dead.
Rossignol Krypto 163 2013. Great for fast open freeriding and piste charging. The La Grave board nowadays.
Douk Asbo 155 2016 for playing about on piste and occasional park. Been relegated to spare since the newest arrival
K2 Cool Bean 144 2017 for deep trees and slush. Only had a handful of days on it.
Jones Hovercraft 156 2012. Bought v cheap secondhand in 2020 to see if I liked the concept...
Jones Hovercraft 156 2020. Stiffer than the 2012 (but maybe just less used). Love this thing for allround offpiste, surfy but still commits.
Amplid Singular Twin 152 2023. Closest thing I have to an "allrounder" and it ticks that box. Brilliant for when I CBA to bring more than one deck, especially on trips that aren't so off-piste focused.
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| leggyblonde wrote: |
| @Gainz, Yet none of those boards have made it to an off-piste bash?! |
Lol excellent!!
Yes yes I promise I'll make it but won't be this year or next atm unfortunately.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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| Whitegold wrote: |
This is an old thread.
Some of the OPs may have gone to the big snowboard in the sky. |
Time to salute them with an attempt at a halfcab (followed by some ibuprofen gel and beer to ease the pain)
I will admit that the last two trips (bar one day) have been spent on skis as I tried to master dual planks after 15 or so years of classing myself just as a snowboarder. At 45 I'm not sure if learning to ski with a dodgy hip and less-than-ideal flexibility is the wisest of moves, but it's been fun nonetheless and I've got a new respect for people who can ski well, it's a bit of an art form I think.
However, we're going to L2A at Easter and I'm seriously considering going back to a board; my 15yo lad gravitated to boarding as soon as we asked him which he'd prefer to do on his first ski holiday, and now I kind of feel like I should re-join the club, a bit for his sake and a bit to re-light the fire, show him a few tricks and also some solidarity - mum, sister and the friends we holiday with all ski, so he's the butt of all jokes for taking too long to strap in etc.
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hi all, my first post on SH.
All this board talk has my imposter syndrome spiking.
I had a hand-me-down Burton A board for a few years until my 30th (i'm 48 now) where i got a 2007 Burton Custom 154.
A service each trip on arrival day and it still flies down the hill. Showing a few marks, but thats nostalgia right?
My only recent upgrade has been the Step-ons. Game changer for enjoyment and not holding the skiers in the family up. Would recommend. They haven't changed anything about the way I ride, they feel identical as my Burton P1 bindings i had before.
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FAQ
), hated it and has boarded ever since.
